Top doc rescinds local mask rule

Provincial rule the standard

The chief medical officer of health for Windsor-essex County is rescinding the mask mandate he ordered for the region in June to avoid confusion with the still-standing and stricter provincial face mask rules.

In an effort to make it clear to residents whose mask rules they should follow, Dr. Wajid Ahmed on Friday announced people should look to the province.

While his mask mandate was created before most other jurisdictions in Ontario made face coverings a requirement in indoor settings, the provincial government has since taken the orders several steps further.

“Under the provincial regulation ... the local section order on face coverings is no longer necessary since the municipal bylaws and provincial regulation already covering what is in the face-covering order from the local health unit — and the provincial regulations are more restrictive in nature,” he said.

Ahmed's initial order enacted on June 26 required anyone visiting a retail establishment to wear a face covering.

Residents who would not wear a mask for religious reasons were exempt, as were small children and people with medical conditions where a mask would make it difficult to breathe.

Since then, municipalities in Windsor and Essex County have taken it upon themselves to create their own mask bylaws, many of them with tighter restrictions than Ahmed's order.

In August, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens issued a mask order of his own requiring residents to wear a face covering in all indoor public places, including apartment building lobbies, community centres, taxis and entertainment areas.

Under rules from the Doug Ford government, masks must be worn in all public spaces, workplaces — even those not open to the public — and vehicles that operate as part of a business or organization, including taxis and rideshares.

However, employees of workplaces where two metres of physical distancing can be maintained while indoors do not need to wear a face covering.

Small children and those with medical conditions that inhibit a person's ability to wear a mask or who cannot put on and remove a mask without help don't have to wear them.

The province gives no exemption for religious reasons.

Under provincial guidelines, non-medical masks or face coverings should fit securely to the head with ties or ear loops and maintain their shape after washing and drying.

They should also be large enough to completely cover the nose and mouth without gaping.